Saturday 19 - Tuesday 22 December
West Bromwich Albion v AFC Bournemouth
Saturday December 19, 11pm, The Hawthorns
West Brom and Bournemouth meet with both sides unbeaten in four league games.
West Brom were cruelly denied by Divock Origi's deflected strike deep into added time as the Baggies drew 2-2 at Liverpool. Falling a goal behind on 21 minutes, West Brom battled back into the match through two corners either side of halftime with Craig Dawson and Jonas Olsson both capitalising on Liverpool's inability to defend set pieces. With eight minutes' injury time added on at the end, Liverpool were able to rescue a point thanks to substitute Origi.
After beating Chelsea last week, Bournemouth registered another huge scalp, shocking Manchester United 2-1. It took Bournemouth just two minutes to take the lead when Junior Stanislas' corner curled in with the help of a gust of wind. United equalised in the first half before Josh King netted against his old side after the break to hand Bournemouth a deserved win.
Prediction
Bournemouth have the equal worst defensive record in the division and they will be up against a West Brom side who will sit deep and compact in defence and look to beat the Cherries from wide positions and set pieces. West Brom are keenly priced at $2.40 for a home win.
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Match Result - West Bromwich Albion |
Stoke City v Crystal Palace
Saturday December 19, 11pm, Britannia Stadium
Two clubs with a shot at qualifying for a European place meet with Stoke City hosting Crystal Palace.
Stoke played out a goalless draw at West Ham United. Marko Arnautovic passed up his side's best chance in the first half and he came close again in the second half when his free kick was deflected onto the crossbar, with Bojan Krkic firing the rebound over.
Crystal Palace were good value for their victory as they edged past Southampton 1-0 thanks to the combination of Yohan Cabaye and Yannick Bolasie. Bolasie's mazy run on the right set up Cabaye for the winner on 38 minutes. At the back, Palace goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey pulled off two top saves to help seal Palace's first triumph over Southampton in 13 league meetings.
Prediction
Stoke have kept seven clean sheets this season and boast one of the league's top keepers in Jack Butland. The Potters have been rather goal shy but the likes of Bojan, Arnautovic and Xherdan Shaqiri have the quality to pull Palace's defence out of shape to get a positive result from this game.
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Match Result - Stoke City |
Everton v Leicester City
Saturday December 19, 11pm, Goodison Park
Two of the league's highest scorers do battle with Everton taking on Leicester City.
Roberto Martinez's Everton were held to a third consecutive Premier League draw. Everton went ahead when Romelu Lukaku headed home from Gerard Deulofeu's cross at the far post on 16 minutes. But the Toffees disappointingly allowed Norwich back in the contest when Wes Hoolahan scrambled the ball over the line after Ross Barkley had half-cleared a corner.
Leicester City returned to the top of the Premier League with an energetic 2-1 victory over an uninspired Chelsea. As has been the case so far this season, Leicester played with verve and confidence as they took the game straight to the Blues. Once again the duo of Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez scored Leicester's goals and the team generally buzzed around the park which was in contrast to Chelsea who looked jaded and disinterested.
Prediction
The league's three leading scorers are in action. It is seven league goals in as many games for Lukaku and he has been ably assisted by Deulofeu, Barkley and Arouna Kone. While Vardy and Mahrez continue to inspire the Foxes week after week. The prospect is that both sides will go all out on attack as Everton plays with a high line and Leicester's forwards thrive off lightning quick movement.
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Match Result - Leicester City |
Manchester United v Norwich City
Saturday December 19, 11pm, Old Trafford
Manchester United's faltering chase for the title continues at home to Norwich.
United manager Louis van Gaal is under pressure as his side meekly slumped to a 2-1 defeat at Bournemouth. United were behind inside two minutes as goalkeeper David De Gea misjudged Junior Stanislas' corner. Marouane Fellaini got United back into the game with a scrappy close range effort, but Josh King struck the winner from a rehearsed training ground move.
Norwich City came from behind to grab a 1-1 draw at home to Everton. A poor first half from the Canaries was livened up by a spirited second half display after they restored parity little over a minute into the second half when Wes Hoolahan forced a loose ball home. Norwich could have taken all three points when Cameron Jerome blazed a glorious chance over the crossbar with 20 minutes to play.
Prediction
The same criticisms of United's style were on show again at Bournemouth, United lacked directness, and a focal point up front. Juan Mata, one of United's key players, had an awful match as he did not work hard enough to find space to play incisive passes for United's forwards. Norwich's best chance to get something from the game is to let United have a lot of possession in their own half and test their inexperienced defenders with high balls into the penalty area and set pieces.
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Match Result - Manchester United |
Chelsea v Sunderland
Saturday December 19, 11pm, Stamford Bridge
An unexpected relegation battle looms with Chelsea hosting Sunderland.
Chelsea's issues deepened after they lost 2-1 at high-flying Leicester which saw the Blues slip to their ninth defeat. Riyad Mahrez and Jamie Vardy tore through Chelsea to set the Foxes on the way to victory. The reigning Premier League champions were atrocious until they found themselves two goals down, lazy in the tackle and unwilling to take any risks in the pursuit of a much needed goal.
Sunderland fell to a 1-0 defeat at home to Watford with manager Sam Allardyce left to rue a poor start to the match conceding inside four minutes. Allardyce's change in tactics saw his side liven up and then dominate possession in the second half with substitutes Jack Rodwell and Jermain Defoe forcing fine saves from Watford keeper Heurelho Gomes.
Prediction
It is still peculiar to contemplate but Chelsea are just one point above the relegation zone and seem to slump from one toothless performance to another. Sunderland are lively opposition and while Allardyce's team favours solidity it means Chelsea will have to come out of their shell to breakdown the Black Cats. Sunderland's poor away form will count against them here.
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Match Result - Chelsea |
Southampton v Tottenham Hotspur
Saturday December 19, 11pm, St Mary's Stadium
Two sides whose form has been patchy meet with Southampton taking on Tottenham.
Ronald Koeman's men were defeated 1-0 at Crystal Palace. Their best chance came on 32 minutes when Palace keeper Wayne Hennessey pulled off a stunning save to deny a Steven Davis header. Six minutes later, Yohan Cabaye put Palace in front and the Saints did not cause their opponents enough problems to force their way back into the match.
While Tottenham blew their chance of entering the Premier League's top four as they crashed to a last gasp 2-1 defeat at home to Newcastle. Spurs dominated the first half with Erik Lamela superbly denied on two occasions by Newcastle keeper Rob Elliot before Eric Dier headed home to give Spurs the lead. Then Tottenham fell apart, conceding twice in the last 16 minutes to throw away the match and lose for the first time since opening day.
Prediction
Southampton have picked up just one point from their last four league games with their key trio of Graziano Pelle, Sadio Mane and Dusan Tadic out of form. Meanwhile, Tottenham have reverted back to their frustrating selves letting the winnable games slip through their grasp. With that, Spurs will press high and fashion enough chances to beat the Saints.
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Match Result - Tottenham Hotspur |
Newcastle United v Aston Villa
Sunday December 20, 1.30am, St James' Park
Newcastle entertains Aston Villa with renewed confidence after another spirited victory.
The Magpies battled back to beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 thanks to Ayoze Perez's injury time winner. On the back foot for three-quarters of the match, Newcastle equalised on 74 minutes when substitute Aleksandar Mitrovic forced the ball home from close range. The winner came from Mitrovic's knock down and Perez's close control and shot squeezed under Spurs keeper Hugo Lloris.
Aston Villa lost 2-0 at Arsenal in a match where the Gunners barely had to get out of second gear. Remi Garde's side, whose winless run in the top flight now stands at 15 matches, started poorly when Alan Hutton gave away an early penalty and were two goals down by the half. Villa improved in the second half but only carved out half-chances and never fully tested Arsenal keeper Petr Cech.
Prediction
It is becoming increasingly obvious that a number of players in the Villa squad lack the necessary requirements for the Premier League, while Newcastle are showing some fight as they head into the festive season and are well priced for a win.
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Match Result - Newcastle United |
Watford v Liverpool
Sunday December 20, 9.30pm, Vicarage Road
In-form Watford host Liverpool off the back of three straight victories.
Last time out, Watford impressively clung on for a 1-0 win at Sunderland. Watford took an early lead with Odion Ighalo prodding home Allan Nyom's cross on four minutes. The Hornets stubbornly held out in the face of a determined second half performance from Sunderland.
There was late drama at Anfield as substitute Divock Origi's deflected strike after 96 minutes earned Liverpool a 2-2 draw against West Brom. The Reds dominated the game and had led through Jordan Henderson's first-half strike, but their inability to defend set-pieces came to the fore as West Brom got goals either side of halftime following corner kicks.
Prediction
Ighalo is one of the league's most dangerous forwards with 10 goals and has opened the scoring in five matches this season. While Liverpool have issues up front, Christian Benteke is not fitting into Jurgen Klopp's system, Roberto Firmino is hot and cold and Daniel Sturridge is injured. Philippe Coutinho is the key for Liverpool, without him the Reds' creativity diminishes. Look for a draw which is priced at $3.40.
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Match Result - Draw |
Swansea City v West Ham United
Monday December 21, Midnight, Liberty Stadium
Managerless Swansea City will be desperate for maximum points when they take on West Ham United.
What was expected to be a lopsided contest, Swansea were desperately unlucky to go down 2-1 at Manchester City. After falling behind in the first half, Swansea took the game to City and their search for an equaliser was rewarded when Bafetimbi Gomis fired an unstoppable shot in the 90th minute, yet bad luck was to befall the Swans when Yaya Toure's shot to a wicked deflection for the winner.
West Ham United were held to a 0-0 draw at home by Stoke as their winless run stretched to six matches. Mauro Zarate had the Hammers best chance when he lashed his shot against the post but Slaven Bilic's side could not break the deadlock despite a late flurry at Stoke's goal.
Prediction
It is too early to tell if Swansea are going to turn the corner following the dismissal of Garry Monk, one spirited display cannot paper over a horror run of form. The transfer window cannot come soon enough for West Ham who need another striker. Since losing Diafra Sakho and Dimitri Payet to injuries, West Ham have struggled up front and in their current winless run, West Ham have only scored four goals. Both clubs are struggling and a draw is a fair result.
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Match Result - Draw |
Arsenal v Manchester City
Tuesday December 22, 4am, Emirates Stadium
To round out week 17, it is the match of the weekend between title chasers Arsenal and Manchester City.
Arsenal eased to a comfortable 2-0 victory away to Aston Villa. The Gunners took an early lead when Alan Hutton brought down Theo Walcott in the penalty area, allowing Olivier Giroud to net his 50th Premier League goal from the spot. The Gunners doubled their advantage on 38 minutes when Mesut Ozil set up Aaron Ramsey for a simple finish following a swift counterattack.
Manchester City snatched a hugely fortunate late winner to beat Swansea City 2-1. City broke the deadlock through Wilfried Bony who headed home against his former club. For much of the second half, City were pinned into their defensive half and conceded in the 90th minute. Yet minutes later, City came away with the three points when Yaya Toure's shot took a huge deflection off Kelechi Iheanacho.
Prediction
Ozil and Giroud are both in a rich vein of form which has helped Arsenal overcome their injury woes. Sergio Aguero is expected to be fit for City and his appearance cannot come soon enough as Bony has struggled to lead the line. A high quality contest will of course be expected, but both sides will cancel each other out.
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Match Result - Draw |
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